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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ISAIAH S. HYATT, 0F MORRISTOWN, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO THE CELLULOID MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

PROCESS OF MANUFACTURING SHEETS 0F CELLULOID AND OTHER PLASTIC MATERIAL.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 275,215, dated April 3, 1883.

Application filed January 23, [$83. (No specimens.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ISAIAH SMITH llya'r'r, a citizen of the United States, residing at l\Ior ristown, in the county of Morris and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Processes of Manufacturing Sheets of Plastic Material; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

The invention relates to improvements in the manufacture of sheets or veneers of celluloid and other compounds of pyroxylinc; and it consists in a certain novel process hereinafter pointed out, and in the resultant mate rial or product. 7 In carrying my invention into effect I first take a sheet of celluloid or other pyroxyline material ofany desired surface area and about, say, eight one-thousandths of an inch in thickness, more or less, according to the purposes to which it is to be applied, and place the same upon a sheet or piece of polished metal, the two being in face-to-face contact. I have found that a good quality of nickel-plated sheet metal may be employed with good results as .a base against which the sheet of celluloidniay be placed, as aforesaid, and recommend its use when convenientforthepurposespecified. After the sheet of celluloid has been placed upon the polished metal I select a sheet of paper, cloth, or other fibrous or textile material, and after immersing it in a solvent of pyroxylinesuch, for instance, as spirits of ca mph or-I lay it fiat upon the back of the sheet of celluloid, and upon the fibrous or textile material 1 place one or more layers of some absorbent agent for example, such as blotting-paper. The layers of material, arranged as specified, are ready to be inserted in a hydraulic or other press to continue the manufacture; or several tiers of the said layers may be placed one upon the other and the whole given to the press at one time. The amount of pressure employed will be about two hundred and fifty pounds to the squareinch, more or less,-according to circumstances; but the amount of pressure may be increased without danger of impairing the result. The effect of the pressure is to cause the\ polished metal, and the sheet of textile or fibrous material to unite with the back of the pyroxyline. Thus the pyroxyline and its backtamount to one sheet of material. The union of the textile or fibrous material to the pyroxyline is owing to the solvent of the latter, which is carried by the former, and to the compression which retained the two materials in close contact until the union was consummated. The compression of the layers of material with the absorbent material takes up the major portion ofthe solventin the pyroxyline and its backing, after which the whole is taken from the press and the absorbent material removed. The sheet of celluloid or other pyroxyline material is then placed in a heated room or drying-frame of any suitable construction and allowed to dry while still in contact with the polished metal, upon which it will be retained, after it leaves the press, by its own natural adhesion, by atmospheric pressure, or by clamping its edges, or otherwise, as may be found necessary or convenient. When the pyroxyline has become dry it will be removed from the plate, and will be found to have a highly-polished face of a very ornate and desirable character, and the sheet of material is then in proper condition for use, either as a coating or veneering for furniture of all kinds, or for wall-covering, or for any other purpose to which it may be applied. The great variety of tint and appearance that may be given to the celluloid, and its suscep- ,tibility of high polish and tough texture, render the resultant product of great use for or nalnental and other purposes. The application ot'the textile or fibrous backing to the celluloid prevents the material from being easily destroyed, and affords a surface which will permit the productbein g aflixed to the article to which it is to be applied by cement, glue, or other binding agent. Before removmetal it should be allowed to dry sufficiently to preventany tendency in the same to shrink or curl.

The backing placed upon the plastic material may be of various. kinds, which will read ily suggest themselves to the manufacturer. In addition to what has been mentioned in the sheet of pyroxyline to closely adhere to the foregoing parts of this specification, I may Hill ing form, after the compression, what is taning the material from the polished sheet of that a thin veneer of wood may be used with good results as a backingfor thepyroxyline.

It is a fact incident to the process hereinbefore described that the solvents carried by the pyroxyline and backing are absorbed in line with their thickness; hence all lateral shrinkage is avoided.

\Vhat I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The process herein described of producing a sheet of polished celluloid or other compound of pyroxyline having a backing, which consists in, first, placing the sheet of pyroxyline upon a'polished surface; second, laying upon the said sheet a backing which has previously been moistened or saturated with a solvent of pyroxyline; third placing upon the backing absorbent material; and, fourth, subjecting the whole to pressure, substantially as 20 set forth.

2. The process herein described of producing a sheet of polished celluloidor other compound of pyroxyline having a backing, which consists, first, in placing the sheet of pyroxyline upon a polished metallic surface; second, laying upon said sheet a backing which has previously been moistened or saturated with a solvent of pyroxyline; third, placing upon the backing absorbent material; fourth,subjecting the whole to pressure; and, fifth, removing the absorbent material and drying the sheet and backing while in contact with the polished surface, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

ISAIAH SMITH HYATT.

Witnesses:

HERMAN GUs'roW, Guns. 0. GILL. 

